JPEGMAFIA – “I Lay Down My Life for You” review

Baltimore, Maryland emcee, singer, producer & visionary JPEGMAFIA releasing his 5th solo album & the first in 3 years. Breaking out 2016 with the release of his full-length debut Black Ben Carson, it wouldn’t be until the man’s next 2 albums Veteran & All My Heroes are Cornballs where he would reveal himself as one of the most creative minds in hip hop today. The 8-track EP, it’s follow-up with almost all newly recorded material, LP!, the Danny Brown collab effort Scaring the Hoes & Peggy’s production credits on ¥$’ debut album Vultures earlier this year all further solidified that so much I had nothing to worry about ahead of I Lay Down My Life for You.

“I scream this in the mirror before i interact with anyone” begins with a rap rock sound saying Peggy would be a worse version of Dillon Brooks if he was a basketball player whereas “Sin Miedo” works in elements of experimental hip hop, hardcore hip hop, rap rock, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, ghettotech & Baltimore club telling all the big booty hoes to touch the ground. “I’ll Be Right There” gives off a gospel/boom bap flare to the beat coming back outside to take the game by surprise while the experimental “it’s dark & hell’s hot” fires shots at Drake.

Vince Staples joins JPEGMAFIA for the synth-driven “New Black History” co-produced by Flume flexing they hit the lottery earning money like current Monday Night RAW superstar, former 6-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time AEW World Champion, inaugural ROH Hall of Fame inductee, ROH World Champion, 2-time ROH World Tag Team Champion & IWA World Champion CM Punk who later albeit unsuccessfully competed in the UFC division of the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings & dissing Drizzy again with the line “cashing out for PDF’s & rapers” just before “don’t rely on other men” blends industrial hardcore hip hop & industrial rap rap reflecting on Peggy’s unflinching authenticity & his status as a paragon within the experimental hip hop scene. “vulgar display of power” further embraces the rap rock vibes talking about bringing the pain leading into “Exmilitary” sampling “After Laughter (Comes Tears)” by Wendy Rene paying homage to Death Grips’ debut mixtape of the same name.

“JIHAD JOE” flips “It’s Your Thing” by Cold Grits thanks to Kenny Beats dissing those who think they know him while “JPEGULTRA!” featuring Denzel Curry keeps the rock samples going getting on their hardcore shit. “either on or off drugs” soulfully talks about feelin’ like an accident while the lavish boom bap hybrid “loop it & leave it” laughs off anyone who still thinks he’s a joke. “Don’t Put Anything on the Bible” featuring Buzzy Lee psychedelically tackles religion & “i recovered from this” hops over a sample of “Funny How Time Flies (When You’re Having Fun)” by Janet Jackson to break over a bitch.

After the “I.S. 231” intro, “Protect the Cross” gets the deluxe run going by fusing rap metal, hardcore hip hop, nu metal, political hip hop & experimental hip hop calling one’s political beliefs being your gang sign in 2025 taking a couple more shots at Drake while “Jordan Rules” references former 4-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE tag team champion & NXT Champion Sami Zayn. “Cult Status” is a sequel to “New Black History” keeping the same beat with all new lyrics dealin’ with known addicts while “Coke or Dope?” goes rap rock again talking about never being normal again.

The drumless title track featuring Buzzy Lee speaks from his heart that both of them want to find someone with a true connection in the midst of looking back on some of their past relationships & after “Boy You Should Know!” sampling “Body Party” by Ciara lights this bitch on fire, “Allah” cloudily flips “Pelle Coat” by Lil Durk showing a religious side to Peggy praying to the God of Islam while “What in the Hip Hop Hell?” returns to his usually aggressive & experimental style proclaiming Malcolm X didn’t die for this referencing WWE’s 2nd flagship program SmackDown followed by WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Champion & WWE Tag Team Champion The Iron Sheik.

“Come & Get Me” samples “Weak Ass Bitch” by the Three 6 Mafia flexing that he’s too legit while the guitar-based “Bloodline” wants everyone to acknowledge him as if he’s former 6-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion & the Only Tribal Chief Roman Reigns who had the honor of inducting his wiseman in former ECW owner Paul Heyman as a WWE Hall of Famer this past spring. “Hate” by FREAKY stakes his claim as being one of the best rappers alive & Kenny Beats giving it a dark trap sound while the final bonus track “Take An” concludes with an instrumental outro.

6 & a half years since I’ve been introduced to him through his sophomore effort Veteran, Peggy has always been ahead of the curve as far as modern experimental hip hop goes & I Lay Down My Life for You reaffirms that notion serving as the 4th consecutive classic in his discography already. The themes of religion are more prominent in contrast to JPEGMAFIA’s earlier material as he pushes his experimental hardcore hip hop sound beyond industrial hip hop, rap rock, boom bap, deconstructed club, ghettotech & Baltimore club with a couple stronger guests than LP!.

Score: 4.5/5

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Skitzo – “Tre-Von” review

Kalamazoo, Michigan emcee Skitzo releasing his 8th studio LP & MonStar Entertainment debut. Introducing himself in the underground through his 2010 debut The Ghetto Democrat, he subsequently gained more exposure with The Sumerian Tablet as well as Political Avatar & Deities. The next 3 albums The Butterfly Effect, Black Wolf & Lucid Dreams further strengthened his status to the point where Flint emcee & one of the last artists Psychopathic Records put on Lyte signed Skitzo to MonStar Entertainment in the summer of 2022. I even had the pleasure of meeting him at Astronomicon 3 right before the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, so I knew Tre-Von was gonna be the most important entry of his discography yet.

“F.A.F.O. (Fuck Around Find Out)” is a piano trap opener talking about those tryna test him whereas “Wild Things” featuring Frank Nitty works in an eerier atmosphere keeping the hi-hats in tact cautioning not to look far if you’re looking for bullshit. “Don’t Make Me” continues the trap vibes warning that they’ll act a fool if you keep pissin’ ‘em off, but then “Blqck Boy Lost” has to be one of the most personal moments addressing family issues.

The soulful trap vibes on “Power” are joyous & motivational looking to protect his peace leading into “Run It” featuring Majik Ninja Entertainment’s filthiest G-Mo Skee going full-blown boom bap putting the ski masks on their faces getting on their battle shit lyrically. “The God Butcher” is a rock/trap crossover paying tribute to all the homies he’s lost in the last year while the drearier “Picking Up the Pieces” discussing that you can tell when life gets messy.

“Pure Michigan” fuses soul & trap again paying homage to the state that raised him while “Pagne” brings a delicate trap flare to the table so Skitzo can talk about everyone seeing him shine. “Carousel” featuring Str8jaket keeps the same energy finding MonStar’s very first signees venting the thoughts that’ve been spinning in their heads & “Fast Lane” featuring Lil’ Polk & Lyte finishes the LP aggressively reminding that the MonStar Clique don’t play.

Coming fresh off his autobiography Water from Cactus over a year ago at this point, Skitzo’s first album in 6 years happens to be the most personal of his entire discography & the finest example of what’s to come from him through MonStar Entertainment going forward. The K-Zoo bred MC sounds rejuvenated, G-Mo alongside the rest of the MonStar roster match his energy & Mr. K.A.’s trap-heavy production has some sincerely interesting ideas.

Score: 4/5

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Juganot da Beast – “Purgatory” review

Richmond, California emcee Juganot da Beast returning almost 2 years after the sophomore effort Lovelly’s Baby Boy for his 3rd full-length studio LP. Emerging in the fall of 2019 off the debut EP P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment), he followed this up a year later with the debut album Pennsylvania Ave as well as the Love is Pain mixtape & the previously mentioned Lovelly’s Baby Boy. I had the pleasure of meeting Juganot myself at Astronomicon 7 a few months back & I was really flattered by him telling me how happy he was that we got to link up, so I decided to give Purgatory a listen.

“Guillotine” is a trunk-rattling opener explaining that they don’t understand exactly how different he is out here whereas “Hold Me Down” kinda gives me a dreary trap vibe instrumentally confessing that he’s been going through it for a while now. “U Ain’t Mobbin’” radiates a grim atmosphere dissin’ all the fakes who ain’t really ‘bout that gang life, but then “Not My Problem” featuring Swanky Rich cloudily talks about bitches not being something they should worry over.

We get some pianos & hi-hats woven together for “Where Jug At?” addressing those who been looking for him for a minute just before the standout “None of Y’all” featuring his cousin G-Mo Skee gets on the boom bap tip thanks to Eminem’s current hypeman mR. pOrTeR of prior D12 fame making it clear they ain’t fuckin’ with none of these muhfuckas out here. “Old School 50” keeps the kicks & snares together inspired by vintage 50 Cent flexing that his pedigree is as Beast as 14-time WWE world champion, WWE Hall of Famer, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE tag team champion & the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division’s CCO Triple H leading into the smooth “Holla at You” getting romantic topically.

“You Can Be Touched” gives off a bit of a mobb flare to the beat telling y’all he don’t give a fuck about how many bodies you’ve dropped & that it was an epic fail attempting to even kill da Beast to begin with while the guitar-driven “Letter to My Younger Self” sends a message to Juganot of the past. “O.G.” futuristically refuses to rest with his mind on the money while the violin-laced “I’m Him” produced by Nobe discusses being on a new level. “Everybody’s a Killer” fuses g-funk & horrorcore calling out the pussies who started rapping & the jazzy “Letter to Heaven” ends promising to stay to himself.

G-Mo’s been my favorite MC to come out of the Rich for over a decade now since his verses on “Lunchtime Cypher” & “Innermost Hate” and Purgatory if anything reveals itself as the strongest body of work that Juganot da Beast has ever put his heart & soul into, which is why I hope he doesn’t quit making music after this. The production ranges from trap to boom bap, g-funk, horrorcore, jazz rap, mobb music & cloud rap backing Juganot’s most passionate lyricism to date.

Score: 4/5

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Wiz Khalifa – “Wiz Owens” review

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania rapper, singer/songwriter, actor & entrepreneur Wiz Khalifa preluding Kush & OJ 2 with his 22nd mixtape named after California fashion designer Rick Owens’ main line. Following his first 2 albums Show & Prove and Deal or No Deal as well as his 8th & 9th mixtapes Kush & OJ and Cabin Fever respectively, his Atlantic Records-backed 3rd album Rollin’ Papers established him as a star & stoner’s icon as did the Mac + Devin Go to High School film & soundtrack. Taylor Allderdice would also receive acclaim, although a lot of what he’s released since has been hit or miss with the biggest hits being Fly Times: The Good Fly Young & the Stoner’s Night collab tape with Taylor Gang Records signee & Three 6 Mafia co-founder Juicy J from a couple years back.

“Jet Lag” starts off with a jazzy beat, a flow similar to Max B talking about wanting the whole stash instead of going 50/50 & even a missed opportunity of not putting Curren$y on it whereas “Crispy T” featuring Sosamann & produced by Sledgren who did most of Wiz Owens takes the futuristic west coast route instrumentally in the vein of Larry June flexing his pack too loud getting everyone lifted. The “Uhh!” adlibs at the beginning of “Yellow Diamonds” & really throughout the tape feel bitten from No Limit Records’ heyday in the late 90s promising that he’ll show y’all too it that is until “1200 to Smoke” delves further into that west coast sound getting on his stoner shit.

Young Deji & 24hrs join Wiz for the final verse & the hook of “Gym Getting Fine” respectively blending luxurious trap & pop rap in a tacky fashion outside of an A24 Films reference leading into “Early Mimosas” giving off a summertime vibe unsure that he can trust this bad bitch he knows. “Innit” throws it back to “Like a Movie” from Deal or No Deal with the sax sample at the start assuring going trap again to end the first half of Wiz Owens talk about everything in his life being good at this point especially if the weed’s lit, but then “Movie Role” laces his vocals in monotonous auto-tune over synths flexing that this be his actual life.

“When I Was Young” gives off a cavernous trap flare to the beat finding out in his youth that you have to stick to your plan if you even got one while “On Bro” draws inspiration from Three 6 Mafia with it’s instrumental being fried like France & eyes like Japan. “PTSD” is a jazz trap fusion talking about people wanting him to come back when he hardly left while “Dream About You” reuses Ice Spice’s flow sampling “Complicated” by Nivea. “Smoke Break” ends luxuriously welcoming y’all to the private yacht club.

Unfortunately as much as I love Sledgren as a producer & the fact that he did 10 of the 13 tracks on Wiz Owens is amazing, the tape unfortunately gets dragged down by bad mixing as well as only a few underwhelming guests & even the performances from Wiz himself feel flat a lot of the times. Kush & OJ next to Taylor Allderdice are the best tapes in his discography, so I really hope he comes correct with Kush & OJ 2 since the original is held to such a a high standard in his discography.

Score: 1.5/5

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Jakesand – “Sandbox” review

This is the 2nd EP from Michigan producer Jakesand. Releasing his debut EP El Fureidis in the summer of 2018, he has since become an in-house producer for Lando Bando’s own EMPIRE Distribution imprint The Hip Hop Lab Records working with some of their biggest acts from the ShittyBoyz both as a group & as solo artists to $weet-T & Prince Jefe. 6 years later, he’s making a comeback & putting out Sandbox through the biggest Detroit trap label out amassing what looks to be an immensely promising list of guest performers.

“Motion Picture” by Babytron co-produced by Danny G references WWE Hall of Famer, 7-time WWE Women’s Champion & former WWE Hardcore Champion Trish Stratus while “Business” by Lil P might be the only track I don’t care for despite the rich Detroit trap instrumental. “Jonah Hex” by J1Hunnit has a witty bar referring to the Paramount Skydance Corporation subsidiary NBCUniversal-owned Shrek franchise while “100 Routes” by Stanwill talks about having 100 methods.

Tony Shhnow surprisingly has his own song with “Sell a Dream” boasting that he’s in love with the money & wakes up every morning with the intention of making more of it just before “Pints, Pills, Prescriptions” by Babytron, Fordio & MJPaid finishes up the Sandbox experience with all 3 members of the Dog $hit Militia trading brief verses with one another & everyone holding their own weight.

Between this & the El Fureidis EP, it’s no debate from my perspective that Sandbox is the best solo offering that we’ve gotten from Jakesand thus far. I’m confident that we’ll be getting a sequel to it at some point sooner rather than later because his production as strong as the predecessors, except there’s more consistency from the guests who’re performing over his Detroit trap beats.

Score: 4/5

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Raz Fresco – “The Eternal Now” review

Toronto, Ontario, Canada emcee/producer Raz Fresco enlisting west coast veteran DJ Muggs for what I’m pretty sure is his 16th proper full-length solo LP. I’ve been familiar with the guy since my high school years at this point whether it be some of his features or his own extensive discography including the Magneto Was Right mixtape series, the Futurewave-produced Gorgeous Polo Sportsmen album, the Nicholas Craven-produced Boulangerie album, the Cake beat tapes, the Gia…À La Carte collab EP with Estee Nack or more recently the Cookin’ Soul produced Bakin’ Soul & the Daniel Son collab effort Northside. Further continuing the acclaim of the latter 3 received, The Eternal Now seemed like there was a high chance it could surpass them since Muggs been on a roll producing projects for other artists in recent memory & helping bring the best out of them.

The title track sets the tone of what’s to come from the jazzy instrumental to the lyrics letting everyone know exactly what they’re living in at this very moment whereas luxuriously “Memory Lane” talks about people spending too much time reflecting & being nostalgic, which I wholeheartedly agree with. “Look What You Made Me Do” goes full-blown boom bap examining the darkest side of Raz’ mind prior to the orchestral “Smoke & Mirrors” talking about the game being as cold as it is.

“Blood Money” strips the drums completely feeling alive whenever the sun touches him just before the “Ghost of Garvey” featuring Gritfall & The 6th Letter finds the trio over a crooning sample flexing that they brought back Marcus Garvey’s spirit. “King Tubby” makes a turn into drumless territory once again feeling like he wants to cry for the people sometimes due to the cruelness of the world leading into “Blow Up the Spot” returning to the boom bap talking about hitting the lottery if he had a nickel for every time he called out a poser for trying to be official.

Starting the 2nd leg, “Fake Beef” ruggedly warns that y’all can catch the smoker similarly to Terrell Owens & keeping the gates of Hell open reserving Heaven for the best while the dustily jazzy hybrid “World Peace” talks about the game plan trying to be taking land with their names on the building. “Pan’s Labyrinth” strips the drums once more discussing a trapped king trapped in faun’s elaborate & confusing structure while “Big Soul Assassins” returns to the boom bap representing the titular Soul Assassins collective.

“Staircase Stories” nears the end of The Eternal Now if you couldn’t tell by the title unearths his own tales from the staircases over a raw beat with an acoustic-sounding drum pattern & I found the rock sampling throughout “50 Bop” to be quite interesting allowing Raz to spaz the fuck out on the mic to the point where I can say it’s my favorite track here. “Spooky” closes the LP hopping on top of a drumless jazz sample calling himself Professor X with his mind.

Raz has already been having a Hell of a 2024 from Bakin’ Soul to Northside & surely enough, The Eternal Now reaches past Bakin’ Soul as the best full-length album in his entire discography yet. DJ Muggs’ production ranges from boom bap to drumless, jazz rap & rap rock giving a glimpse of the Toronto emcee keeping the same energy lyrically that he’s kept since the last couple projects of his that I previously covered.

Score: 4.5/5

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Rakim – “G.O.Ds Network (REB7RTH)” review

Rakim is a 56 year old MC/producer from Long Island, New York notable for being 1/2 of the seminal golden age duo Eric B. & Rakim. They put out 4 classic albums together from the mid-80s to the early 90s, with their debut Paid in Full & the sophomore effort Follow the Leader laying out the groundwork for future generations of hip hop to come. Kid Wizard eventually went solo in late ‘97 signing to Universal Music Group for an acclaimed debut The 18th Letter & the follow-up The Master while not as acclaimed still received positive feedback. Reception to The 7th Seal a decade after The Master was more mixed due to the lackluster production although the lyricism was certainly praised, but is returning after 15 years for a self-produced solo EP.

“Be Ill” featuring Kurupt & Masta Killa was a soulful boom bap choice of a lead single allowing the trio to talk about being down & real whereas “Now’s the Time” featuring B.G., Compton Menace & Hus Kingpin keeps it rugged explaining that the time is in fact now & they’re the last to know it. “Love’s the Message” featuring the late Nipsey Hu$$le, Planet Asia & WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg takes the cloudy boom bap route instrumentally asking if you can see what they see while the symphonic “God’s Playground” featuring DMX, Fred the Godson, Skyzoo & 38 Spesh declares that the chase is on.

Canibus, Chino XL in what would be the final feature of his lifetime, KXNG CROOKED & La the Darkman all join The God for “Pendulum Swing” hooking up kicks, snares & strings looking to make a major change in the game together referencing Neuralink founded by Tesla CEO, SpaceX founder & Twitter owner Elon Musk leading into “International” featuring Joell Ortiz, Kool G Rap & TriState nearing the conclusion of G.O.Ds Network (REB7RTH) on some piano/boom bap shit wanting the money as opposed to violence. “Sign of 7” featuring Big Twins, Method Man, the late Prodigy & X-Raided finally ends the EP with the quintet luxuriously talking about being the mob including a reference to WWE Hall of Famer Ozzy Osbourne.

This man has to be in my top 3 with Nas & Kendrick Lamar, so it makes me more than thrilled that hear that his “G.O.D.” status extends to more than just lyricism by showing Rakim’s chops as a producer & resulting in one of the best EPs of what’s already been a prolific year in hip hop culture. The God hasn’t lost a step lyrically, the production is WAY better than The 7th Seal & a majority of the guests hold their own weight on the mic being some of the best that the east, west & south have to offer.

Score: 4/5

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Flee Lord – “Raised in the Sand” review

Queens, New York emcee Flee Lord is back with his 18th EP. Coming up in 2017 as protege of the late Prodigy, he has since become known for building up a massive discography for himself in the last 5 years. This includes the Loyalty or Death: Lord Talk trilogy produced by GodBlessBeatz, the Loyalty or Trust duology produced by 38 Spesh, the DJ Shay-produced Lucky 13 the Buckwild-produced Hand Me My Flowers, the Pete Rock-produced The People’s Champ & the Havoc-produced In the Name of Prodigy, the DJ Muggs-produced RAMM£LLZ££, the Roc Marciano produced Delgado. Last time I covered him was his 4th proper full-length album Ladies & Gentlemen which was followed by 2 more LPs 2-3 Zone & Full Court Press, but Raised in the Sand peaked my interest even more.

The title track starts off with a hypnotic boom bap instrumental talking about drawing a clear vision in the booth with his pen whereas “Hate When You Rich” produced by Harry Fraud works in a drearier loop with kicks & snares addressing those who envy his bread stacking up. “Snakes in Disguise” is an organ/boom bap crossover that DJ Green Lantern cooked up calling out those in the streets who’re literally snakes in disguise prior to “Pay the Price” swaps the organs out with a piano explaining that it takes to business with him.

V Don gives “Where’s the Love?” a soulful vibe telling y’all to get yours, lay low & stay out the way leading into “Ice Water 2” featuring Roc Marciano serving as a drumless sequel to “Ice Water” by Raekwon featuring Cappadonna & Ghostface Killah laced with the help of Mephux. Lord Mobb Music in-house producer Ghost Dave jumps behind the boards for the rap rock flavored “Lord’s Work” featuring Mummz & Trizz getting on their street shit just before “Brother 4 Life” soulfully talks about loyalty over Pounds440 sampling soul music.

“Skipping Out the Bank” featuring Pounds440 himself starts the final moments of Raised in the Sand by jumping on top of horns together literally skipping out the bank in the midst of everyone in their lives who’re jealous of them stressing out even further due to the fact & “Get Yours” ends the EP telling the homie to pass him a drink & given that he doesn’t do it very often, he’s in the mood to celebrate right now keeping the beat exuberant yet dusty at the exact same time.

Flee’s last couple albums were good, but I haven’t found myself enjoying a project from him this much since Delgado. Needless to say, what we have in front of us is the best EP that the guy has put out in 3 years. The production is a cut above 2-3 Zone & Full Court Press, I like that the amount of guests are toned down in comparison & Flee Lord himself tells everyone what it was like for him being Raised in the Sand.

Score: 4.5/5

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Gordo – “Diamante” review

Gordo or formerly known as Carnage is a 33 year old Guatemalan American DJ, producer & former rapper breaking through the mainstream in the fall of 2015 off the strength of the festival trap full-length debut Papi Gordo. He further established himself forming the duo Young Martha with Young Thug, putting out an eponymous EP nearly 23 months later. Battered, Bruised & Bloody mainly explored trap music as a subgenre to mixed reception & Carnage subsequently became Gordo after transitioning from trap to techno & house. Further cementing his artistic reinvention, he’s coming back 6 years following the sophomore effort for his 3rd album.

“Guard Down” co-produced by &ME & featuring additional vocals from Alice Aera begins by venturing out into the latter’s signature deep/tech house sound for nearly 6 minutes whereas “Sideways” by Drake is one of 2 leftovers from the Honestly, Nevermind sessions admitting to this woman that he used to love her when she was never hers to begin with. “Honeyland” featuring additional vocals from Afshin Momadi moves on from there with a cool afro house detour for nearly 4 minutes, but then “Easier” puts a bigger emphasis on the tech house side of things instrumentally with the help of Rampa.

T-Pain on “Target” has to be one of the best guest performers during the entire LP singing over a house beat with the pitch of his vocals being slowed down that he got a big target on his back even when he’s in motion that is until the out-of-body experience “Lake Como” disappointingly doesn’t have Larry June rapping at all, instead providing additional vocals throughout the playful instrumental. “Candid Zone” by Leon Bridges has a funkier house flare feeling quite rather frank him just before “Nene” by Fuerza Regida gives the corrido tumbado band shine showcasing their sierreño/trap style in front of a wider audience.

“Cafecito” by Nicki Nicole & Sech decently blends Latin pop & reggaeton with house music all together professing their love for one another dating back to when they were children starting the 2nd half of Diamante while the 2nd single “Parcera” by Maluma unpleasantly mutates tech house, balearic beat & tropical house talking requesting that the light be turned off. “Hombres Y Mujeres” by Feid was a superior tech hip house choice of a lead single in comparison to the previous cut talking about the rich smelling if there are men & women while “Kill for This Shit” featuring additional vocals from the late Young Dolph couldn’t have been a better Memphis/house crossover.

The tech house influences make their way back in the spotlight for “Take Control” advising one on the verge of leaving to do literally that on the way out while “W.D.Y.M. (What Do You Mean?)” by Karolina Falk sings about being the same as previously over a guitar/house hybrid. “Aura” by NTO clashes elements of house & techno telling people to take a 2nd look inside themselves & the inspirational “Healing” by Drake has to be my favorite appearance of the 2 that he makes singing that he doesn’t want to hurt himself anymore.

Of the 3 solo efforts that Gordo has given the world under his belt in the span of almost a decade, Diamante consistently celebrates his heritage significantly more than the previous couple LPs did. So much that I can say what we have here unquestionably stands out as his most personal album in his discography yet. He mainly keeps it in afro house/amapiano turf occasionally pulling from contemporary R&B, tech house, hip house, balearic beat, tropical house, deep house, hip hop, pop, reggaeton, corrido tumbado, jazz & indie music for a dedication to his grandmother narratively centering it around his Nicaraguan-American roots.

Score: 3.5/5

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Coyote – “L.Aliens” review

This is the sophomore full-length studio LP from Los Angeles, California duo Coyote. Consisting of the Morales brothers LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco, they went on to gain traction in late 2022 off their debut album Thicker than Water noted for its witty punchlines & East coast influences. However, their official follow up a year & a half later L.Aliens is quickly becoming their breakout project to the point where people were recommending that I give it a shot & I was more than willing to since the tracklist looked promising.

“Pop the Trunk” kicks the door down as hard as possible with it’s boom bap production & hardcore lyricism reminiscent to the 90s whereas “3 Lokos” featuring fucking Shaquille O’Neal works in more kicks & snares feeling reminiscent to Havoc’s production throughout Mobb Deep’s timeless sophomore effort The Infamous… talking about all 3 of them being psychos. The instrumental on “Pocho” featuring MC Magic feels like something Tyler, The Creator would’ve made during the Odd Future days & I mean that as a compliment as someone who’s been down with him since that era showing off their Mexican heritage & “Tryna Get High Foo?” featuring B-Real is a boom bap-heavy smoker’s theme.

Moving forward with “LA LA Land”, we have LadiesLoveGuapo & Ricky Blanco venturing out in trap territory telling us what it was like for them going up in the City of Angels prior to “D.U.I” featuring SUCKERFREE104 hooking up bells as well as kicks & snares to talk about having too much to drink & pullin’ up on your bitch with the roof off under the influence. “Buck 50” swaps the bells out in favor of sampling asking if you really walk it like you talk it with your chest out while “Do You” puts a psychedelic spin on trap dropping flexing on everyone else in the underground.

Shady Records signee Westside Boogie coming fresh off opening for Kendrick Lamar during his Pop Out concert at the Kia Forum last night uniting the west coast since the deaths of Kobe Bryant & Nipsey Hu$$le joins Coyote for the syrupy “House Party” further exemplified by the chopped & screwed hook repping Los Angeles & Compton respectively leading into the soulful “Pushin’” featuring Doeman keeping it playa & positive. The trap-flavored “Wadadabang” featuring The Game & Lefty Gunplay gets on their gangsta shit, but then “Devil’s Contract” fuses g-funk & boom bap going horrorcore.

“Letter to God” sees the Morales brothers hopping over an apocalyptic drill beat sending a message to the Higher Power just before “Drugs Bunny” returns to the boom bap drawing inspiration from Daringer instrumentally hilariously dissing Bad Boy Entertainment founder Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy for assaulting Cassie & being a grown man acting like a bitch. “Note to Self” embraces the trap sound once more assuring that the repercussions will be worth it while “Cheers” takes the cloudier route explaining that you either in it or you ain’t.

Meanwhile, the bouncy “Splash” talks about how they’ll treat you like the rest determining your value by who you think you are elevating instead of staying down while “Blanco the Blizzard” marks a return of the Griselda boom bap vibes discussing fame & attention being the cons of popping off dressed in a whole Gucci fit. “Hunger Flow” featuring Justin Credible keeps the kicks & snares tightened getting murderous while “Quema Quema” goes full-blown Latin trap.

“Rings” enlists Shaq on the mic 1 last time nearing the conclusion of L.Aliens providing a jazzy trap fusion treating hip hop like a sport when it really ain’t no game & “Busca La Muerte” serves as a 2-minute Latin closer talking those that seek death. “I Swear to God” begins the deluxe run drumlessly guiding lost souls while the cloudy trap joint “Chingasu” shows off a more carefree attitude from the duo.

The aggressiveness of “This Ain’t What You Want” fits the horn heavy sound as they caution everyone who wants smoke with them that they really don’t while “Poplock” featuring Hoodlum experiments with the Memphis scene painting imagery of the gangsta lifestyle while “Brown Boys Rollin’” finds them rollin’ through the hood & being misunderstood as Mexican-Americans.

“Rest of Yo Life” smoothly refuses to wife up any woman who’ll give them children & no wedding rings while the boom bap “Onyx” talks trying to live & drugs ruling everything around them. “New Era Cypher” featuring Rowdy Racks continues to show some Mobb Deep inspiration from the beat to the aggressive lyricism from all 3 of them while the sample-heavy “1 More Time” looks to spin the block if they don’t get ‘em. The final bonus track “Afraid of Losing You” ends the deluxe with a shot at R&B & showing vulnerability in the process.

In comparison to Thicker than Water, the Morales brothers’ sophomore effort here takes them to a whole new level as one of the hottest up-&-coming groups in the west coast hip hop scene. The production goes from boom bap to trap, jazz rap, cloud rap, Latin music, southern hip hop, soul music & even psychedelia turning the punchlines up to 11 & invite a pretty tight list of guests along with them for the ride. It’s also cool that they show their influences & put their own spin on the styles they culminate in a melting pot.

Score: 4/5

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